Media Centre

£3 million Event Fund announced for Homecoming
2014

New Homecoming Director joins from Royal Edinburgh Military
Tattoo

Early details of the funding opportunities to
create Scotland’s Homecoming celebrations in 2014 were announced
today (6 March) at the Scottish Tourism Week conference.

Making the announcement, Fergus Ewing MSP,
Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Tourism said: “I am delighted
that £3 million will be invested in our events industry to create
an inspirational programme of events for Homecoming Scotland.

“In 2014 Scotland will welcome the world as we
stage two of the biggest sporting events - The Commonwealth Games
and The Ryder Cup. This momentous year also sees Scotland’s next
year of Homecoming, giving people even more reason to be in
Scotland and to extend their stay.

“Through EventScotland, the national events
agency, and its work with industry partners this funding will be
used to deliver a series of events that will take place across the
country and throughout the year, appealing to visitors from around
the world and to the people of Scotland.

The Homecoming Scotland 2014 events programme
will be themed around ancestry and the Scottish Government’s Years
of Focus (food and drink, active, creative and natural). The Years
of Focus have helped to sustain the momentum generated by
Homecoming Scotland 2009 by developing additional ways for the
tourism and events industries to work together in preparation for
2014.

A call for funding applications to event
owners and organisers will be made in the summer, when full
criteria and guidelines will be launched.

Homecoming Scotland 2014 is being led by Tom
Chambers who joined the team at EventScotland in February as
Homecoming Scotland Director. Prior to this Tom was Major Projects
Manager with the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

Adding to today’s announcement, Tom said:
“With the funding criteria set to be launched in the coming months,
it is important that event industry partners begin to think about
the celebrations they can create which will attract visitors to
Scotland and enhance Scotland’s profile on the international
stage.

“As with Homecoming Scotland 2009
collaborative working will be the key to success in 2014 - building
on existing Homecoming partnerships and those established during
the delivery of the Years of Focus.”

As well as those events directly funded
through Homecoming, a partner programme will be developed to ensure
the widest possible involvement of Scotland’s communities in the
celebrations. Events included in this programme will benefit from
in-kind support from EventScotland and VisitScotland including
promotional opportunities and inclusion in online and print-based
listings.

Homecoming Scotland is a Scottish Government
initiative managed in partnership by EventScotland and
VisitScotland.

EventScotland

EventScotland is the national events agency
and a directorate within VisitScotland.

EventScotland is working to make Scotland one
of the world’s leading event destinations. By developing an
exciting portfolio of sporting and cultural events EventScotland is
helping to raise Scotland’s international profile and boost the
economy by attracting more visitors. For further information about
EventScotland, its funding programmes and latest event news visit
http://www.eventscotland.org/.

VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its
core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to
Scotland.

The organisation has three key roles:

To market Scotland to all parts of the world to attract
visitors

To provide information – and inspiration – to visitors and
potential visitors so they get the best out of a visit to
Scotland

To provide quality assurance to visitors and quality advice to
the industry and partners to help the industry meet and strive to
exceed customer expectations

VisitScotland works together with tourism businesses to make
tourism a success for everyone and ensure the industry continues to
grow.

The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and
VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.

The years between 2012 and 2014 are
Scotland’s Winning Years - From the Year of Creative Scotland,
the Olympics and Disney-Pixar’s film Brave in 2012 through
to the Commonwealth Games, The Ryder Cup and Homecoming in 2014
everyone has the chance to prosper.

The Year of Creative Scotland began on January 1, 2012 and is a
chance to showcase, celebrate and promote Scotland’s cultural and
creative strengths on a world stage. Through a dynamic and exciting
year-long programme of activity celebrating our world-class events,
festivals, culture and heritage. More information about the
programme can be found at: http://www.visitscotland.com/creative

The Year of Creative Scotland is a Scottish Government
initiative led in partnership by EventScotland, VisitScotland,
Creative Scotland and VOCAL.

The VisitScotland Information Centre network is a unique face
to face channel engaging with around five million visitors and
locals each year. Everyone who uses a VisitScotland Information
Centre goes on to spend an additional £5.35, generating over
£24million for Scotland’s economy.

According to a recent Deloitte study, tourism employs 270,000
people in Scotland in 20,000 diverse businesses. The same study
calculates that the industry contributes £11 billion annually
(direct and indirect impact, including day visits) and supports
around 10 per cent of employment in Scotland. Almost 16 million
tourists take overnight trips to Scotland.